Tesla’s crisis period: it was only a month away from bankruptcy

The annoying upstart Tesla from the auto industry, led by Elon Musk, runs like a train.

In October, the electric car maker posted a net profit for the fifth consecutive quarter. Adjusted earnings came to $ 331 million ($ 0.76 per share). In the same period last year, the profit was $ 143 million. Roll up the candles then.

But this has not always been the case. On Twitter this week, the company’s CEO Elon Musk was asked if Tesla was close to bankruptcy when the Model 3 went into mass production. The Tesla Model 3, that is, the first attempt by the electric car company to build an electric car for the entire market, a “people’s car”.

To this, the eccentric leader replied: “The closest we got was about a month. The Model 3 ramp was extreme stress and pain for a long time, from mid-2017 to mid-2019. Production and logistics hell, ”which roughly translates to“ About almost a month. It was extreme stress and pain over a long period, from mid-2017 to mid-2019. Production and logistics hell. “

This is new information according to CNBC. Musk has previously spoken of “hell” to develop a new electric vehicle and manufacture it in large volumes. However, neither the company nor Musk have previously mentioned how close they were to bankruptcy.

Strong increase in sales of electric cars

How did it sound then during that period? In a 2018 article, Ny Teknik wrote that Model 3 production setbacks never seem to end. By then, the company had had to quickly reduce its production targets and stop production twice.

Once Tesla got the production line in order, it took off. Last year alone, the company sold 367,500 electric cars, a 50 percent increase from the previous year. Model 3 played an important role in that increase.

Since January 2018, Tesla’s share value has risen by more than 560 percent.